Protect Your Family Photos & A Giveaway!

My daughter and I watched the movie Leap Year several years ago. It is a fun chick flick starring Amy Adams. In the movie, her character is asked the question, “If your house is on fire and you had 60 seconds to grab what was important to you, what would it be?”

Well, my “60 seconds” came one night after we were all in bed. It was the first cold night of the year and our newly installed furnace came on. We awoke to smoke alarms blaring and a house filling with smoke. We all made it out safely and firemen determined the smoke was coming from the furnace and there was no actual fire. The fireman cleared the smoke, checked the house from top to bottom and declared it safe for us to return. (The furnace people got a phone call the next morning!)

It was several days later that I realized my “60 seconds” had come and gone. I now knew the answer. Nothing. I took nothing. Beyond making sure the four us got safely out of the house, I took nothing.

So, when I came across ZquaredAway, a fire resistant bag, I was intrigued. Could I protect my family photographs and documents? Could I protect my great great grandparents’ 1883 wedding photo? Could I protect my grandmother’s 1938 scrapbook from her teenage years? What about my children’s photos and art projects?

Maybe I could!

Roberta Flood, the founder of ZquaredAway sent me one of her fire resistant protective covers from the Neva collection to try out. I was super excited to try it out. Note: I did receive my fire resistant Neva bag for free, but the opinions are totally mine.

“I witnessed the sadness experienced by a friend who had lost hundreds of hours of work, thousands of dollars of expense, and an invaluable amount of memories when a house fire and the subsequent fire fighting efforts destroyed their multitude of family albums and scrapbooks.”

Roberta used Nomex to create her fire resistant bags. Nomex is the same material worn by fire fighter in their “turn out gear”.

A Closer Look

The outer layer of the ZquaredAway bag is made of Nomex and is fire and water resistant. The next layer is moisture resistant and the innermost layer is a thermal protection pocket. Watch ZquaredAway in action.

What I Liked

The quality of the ZqauredAway bag is superb. It is well made with an attention to detail. The seams are tight and secure.

The variety of sizes.ZquaredAway comes in a variety of sizes and colors. The smallest is designed to hold 4 thumb drives and measures 8 x 3.5 inches. I think this is a particularly nice size to have since I back up my research frequently. The largest bag holds multiple binders or items measuring 4.5 inches thick by 13 inches tall by 13 inches wide. (I’m sure I can fill several!)

Excellent customer service!

What I Don’t Like

There isn’t anything I don’t like about ZquaredAway. I do think for older photographs (family heirloom photographs) you should place them in archival safe sleeves or albums first before placing them in the ZquaredAway protective cover. The cover should not be used in place of using archival sleeves, albums, etc.

Where Can You Get Yours?

Or….

Enter the ZquaredAway Give Away!

ZquaredAway is giving one reader their very own ZquaredAway Neva Bag. The Neva is a multitasker bag holing up to 5 photo albums measuring 9 x 11.25 x 2 inches. Ends 4 May 2016!

a Rafflecopter giveawayPlease note that this post contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission if you decide to purchase a product/service. This does not cost you extra. Be assured I only recommend products/services that I use and think you would like too.

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About Lisa

Welcome! I'm Lisa. I believe researching your genealogy does not have to be overwhelming. All you need is a solid plan, a genealogy toolbox and the knowledge to use those tools. Read More…

What Others Are Saying

Wonderful Detailed Reports

“After both my parents died, I thought my links to my family history were lost forever. I turned to a genealogy website to try to track down information about my heritage, and found evidence that I qualified to be a Daughter of the American Revolution. Knowing that the official paperwork would require documentation of my ancestors, I turned to Lisa Lisson (no relation) for assistance. She helped track down the links between my Patriot ancestor and me, and helped me to submit my documents to become a Daughter of the American Revolution. Lisa also sent me wonderful detail-filled reports on different members of my family. I have built quite a collection of reprints of family history books based on the sources she found. Lisa’s reports and my book collection will be a resource for my young nephews when they get older and begin asking about where they came from. I can share stories of Puritans and farmers and witchcraft and Irish butchers and Indian raids and pioneers!”

Kathleen L.

2016-09-05T15:10:44+00:00

Kathleen L.

“After both my parents died, I thought my links to my family history were lost forever. I turned to a genealogy website to try to track down information about my heritage, and found evidence that I qualified to be a Daughter of the American Revolution. Knowing that the official paperwork would require documentation of my ancestors, I turned to Lisa Lisson (no relation) for assistance. She helped track down the links between my Patriot ancestor and me, and helped me to submit my documents to become a Daughter of the American Revolution. Lisa also sent me wonderful detail-filled reports on different members of my family. I have built quite a collection of reprints of family history books based on the sources she found. Lisa’s reports and my book collection will be a resource for my young nephews when they get older and begin asking about where they came from. I can share stories of Puritans and farmers and witchcraft and Irish butchers and Indian raids and pioneers!”

http://lisalisson.com/testimonials/wonderful-detailed-reports/

A Partner In Research

I have been a family history researcher for over 30 years ever since my father left me his notes on his family. Since then I have worked with a number of other researchers who have helped me find good sources as I am a stickler for documentary proof of facts.
I consider myself very fortunate to have come in contact with Lisa Lisson. She is diligent and clever about finding those small bits of data that connect people in obscure past records. Beyond that, Lisa is a joy to work with, adaptable, insightful and flexible. She takes a suggestion and works it into a plan of action adapted to my schedule and budget. Above all she is honest about what is possible and prudent in terms of cost and results. I have come to consider her a partner in my work.

Jim S.

2016-09-05T15:17:32+00:00

Jim S.

I have been a family history researcher for over 30 years ever since my father left me his notes on his family. Since then I have worked with a number of other researchers who have helped me find good sources as I am a stickler for documentary proof of facts. I consider myself very fortunate to have come in contact with Lisa Lisson. She is diligent and clever about finding those small bits of data that connect people in obscure past records. Beyond that, Lisa is a joy to work with, adaptable, insightful and flexible. She takes a suggestion and works it into a plan of action adapted to my schedule and budget. Above all she is honest about what is possible and prudent in terms of cost and results. I have come to consider her a partner in my work.

http://lisalisson.com/testimonials/a-partner-in-research/

Thank You!

Thank you for the great ideas and the incentive to get what photos we have identified. I know I have photos from that my grandmother saved that are not marked in any way and no one seems to know who they are. She didn’t share them during her lifetime, but they were found after she passed away.

Michelle T.

2016-09-05T15:25:58+00:00

Michelle T.

Thank you for the great ideas and the incentive to get what photos we have identified. I know I have photos from that my grandmother saved that are not marked in any way and no one seems to know who they are. She didn’t share them during her lifetime, but they were found after she passed away.

http://lisalisson.com/testimonials/thank-you/

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